Many of us who sail are having difficulty, until we stop and catch ourselves, grasping the America’s Cup of today. It is profession entertainment. Yes we all are seduced by the technology of the boats themselves, but almost everything surrounding the cup is a little less savory. The history of the America’s Cup is one highlighted by contentious behavior, but it seems we have reached a new threshold of behavior. It is all about the money.
In stark contrast is the newly launched site about “Figaro”; Bill Snaith’s boats. Much like the story of the Nye’s “Carina” it is a story of family and friends. I encourage readers to visit the site.
Alameda, CA – Artemis Racing, Challenger of Record for the 34th America’s Cup, announced today a new afterguard featuring Olympic medalists; Iain Percy, Nathan Outteridge and Santiago Lange as well as Loïck Peyron, one of the world’s most experienced multihull helmsmen. The technical and multihull experience of this group will provide Artemis an efficient nucleus to guide the team’s AC72, particularly through the next few critical months of sailing and testing.
Iain Percy will also act as sailing team director.
With these changes taking place, Terry Hutchinson has been released from the team. “Terry has made a huge contribution to the team since we started our quest for the America’s Cup. Terry’s leadership and match racing expertise led Artemis Racing to win the 2012 ACWS Match Racing Championships and has brought the team to where we are today. We appreciate all of his efforts and dedication. We wish him the very best for the future,” said Paul Cayard, CEO of Artemis Racing.
Artemis Racing’s 72 was christened on November 3rd and the team has been training on San Francisco Bay in preparation for the Louis Vuitton Cup Challenger Series which begins next summer, as a lead up to the 34th America’s Cup in September 2013.
Cayard added: “With the America’s Cup racing just seven months away, it’s crucial that we maximize each day the team is sailing the AC72, both in terms of training, as well as understanding the boat’s limitations and attributes to be considered for future boat and wing development. The experience this afterguard brings is unmatched and is what will help the team succeed.”
The sport of the America’s Cup is big business, corporate in structure, so really changes like this should come as no surprise. I am perhaps showing my age, I am always surprised, even when I know better.
Jimmy Spithill of Oracle will be challenged for his position as helmsman in the coming months by Ben Anslie. The Olympics have truly become a stepping stone to a career in sailing.
I have long believed that there is only one way to learn sailing and that is with another boat near you. Training with a second boat is even better than racing, if you want to learn. Certainly in our college years it is what we did; practice makes perfect, even when you are good.
Not only are we still wondering if the 72 foot catamaran was a good choice for the America’s Cup series; for many reasons, not the least of which is cost. This event has proved just how fragile the boats are. Even the last America’s Cup sailed in Valencia with the technological marvels were very fragile as well. However nothing was apparently learned from that event.
There is also a question of judgement when sailing, knowing when to say no. On the other hand, as I stated, better to push the envelope now and find the limits early.
News yesterday that Artemis damaged their boat towing it without a rig in place.
A 72 foot Oracle vessel training for the America’s Cup, capsized in San Francisco Bay Tuesday October 16, 2012 and currents carried it out into the ocean. Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle / SF
(10-17) 09:58 PDT SAN FRANCISCO — The state-of-the art Oracle Team USA catamaran racing sailboat that flipped during a bay practice run and was dragged out the Golden Gate was brought back to its San Francisco base early Wednesday.
The AC72 racing craft arrived at Pier 80 south of the Bay Bridge around 12:45 a.m., more than nine hours after it capsized off the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco and was dragged upside-down out to sea by a strong ebb tide. Oracle Team USA utility boats towed the boat to shore as the U.S. Coast Guard monitored the operation.
The full extent of the damage to the $8 million carbon-fiber boat was not immediately clear. But team officials said the wing – the long, mast-like apparatus that shoots in the air to catch the wind – was destroyed.
At the team’s base of operations at Pier 80 on Wednesday, crews hauled out the bits of mangled wing sail and began examining the hull of the 72-foot-long catamaran to see what could be salvaged. Early in the day, the boat was still upside-down as crews prepared to lift it out of the water.
“We’re just looking at all the damage and getting some of the loose bits freed up so we can lift (the hull) out,” said team tactician John Kostecki as divers inspected the wreckage.
One of the boat’s hulls was entirely filled with water and the other was almost three-quarters full, he said.
“We’re happy to have the platform, but the wing sail is very damaged,” Kostecki said. “That looks like at the moment to be the biggest setback.”
The boat was hard to lasso when it capsized Tuesday because it pitched forward. Crews had to spend precious hours trying to flip the boat on its side while the boat was being sucked out to sea by a 5-knot current.
Once the crews got the boat on its side, the large, violent Pacific waves tore the wing sail apart.
“The misfortune really was that there was an outgoing sea current that swept the boat into a bigger seaway which caused a lot of damage,” Kostecki said.
“It is the first time one of these AC72s capsized,” he said. “It is kind of new territory for everybody.”
He added, “I don’t think there will be any major changes (to the design of the boat). We still don’t know what went wrong.”
The boat, with a wing height of 131 feet, is supposed to defend the America’s Cup when the competition is held on the bay next year. The 11-member racing crew was out for a practice spin Tuesday when the craft tipped over. None of the sailors was injured.
The Oracle team dispatched nine boats to salvage the AC72, which was swept more than 4 miles west of the Golden Gate.
In today’s world we should not be surprised that there is video. Still very cool that it exists. The 72 foot cats are very powerful; and very fragile. The America’s Cup series may well turn out to be a series of attrition. Last man standing. You cannot win a race if you don’t finish. It also makes it very expensive to have an entry.
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